Israel quietly letting Jews pray on Temple Mount, in break with status quo -- TV

[Israeli]

8. Bennett's Shift on Jewish Prayer on the Temple Mount May Be a Game Changer

A statement by him seems to mark the first time an Israeli prime minister has officially referred to preserving Jewish freedom of worship at the Jerusalem flash point

Someone apparently decided that Saturday night, the eve of the Tisha B’Av fast day, was the right time to make sure the Israeli media knew about the changes to the status quo regarding Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount.

Journalists enthusiastically reported on the quiet revolution taking place on the Mount: regular Jewish prayer services under the auspices of the police, in the place where a ban on Jewish prayer had been strictly enforced for decades, certainly prayer in groups. The change has evolved over the past two years; it had already been reported on, but of course, a report on Channel 12 News has a greater effect.

On Sunday morning, when hundreds of Jews once again ascended to the Mount, among them two legislators from Naftali Bennett’s Yamina party, there were clashes between Muslim worshippers and the police. In one incident a Muslim prayer hall was damaged.

The Palestinian media reported that dozens of people were hurt from gas inhalation and blows from police batons. Hamas and the northern branch of the Islamic Movement were just waiting for the opportunity. The clashes, which weren’t especially intense, were described as if combat had taken place in the compound. The presence of Jews on the Mount was highlighted.

Bennett was closely following events, especially since Eid al-Adha, the Muslim Feast of the Sacrifice, begins Monday night and is expected to bring thousands of Muslim worshippers to the Mount. At Bennett’s orders, the police were prepared for the events; events on the Mount fall under the supervision of the Jerusalem police chief, the national police commissioner and the public security minister. By afternoon, 1,679 Jews had entered and exited the compound, and the government was happy that despite the extensive coverage in the Arab media, things didn’t get out of hand.

The pleased Bennett quickly released a statement, with his office thanking Public Security Minister Omer Bar-Lev and Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai “for managing the events on the Temple Mount responsibly and with discretion, while preserving freedom of worship for Jews on the Mount. The prime minister stressed that freedom of worship will continue to be fully preserved for Muslims, who are marking the Day of Arafah and the Feast of the Sacrifice.”

This statement deviated somewhat from Israel’s declared line until now and essentially validated the changes that have been taking place. It’s apparently the first time the Israeli prime minister, in an official statement, has explicitly referred to preserving Jewish freedom of worship on the Temple Mount.

Several experts who have been following events at the site told Haaretz that during his entire premiership, Benjamin Netanyahu was careful to avoid similar remarks. (Though the previous public security ministers, Likud members Amir Ohana and Gilad Erdan, occasionally referred to changes in the status quo.)

Moreover, in 2015, amid the crisis with Jordan and the United States and the "knife intifada" in Jerusalem and the West Bank, Netanyahu released a statement saying that Israel was committed to the status quo and would continue to enforce its policy under which “Muslims will pray on the Temple Mount and non-Muslims will visit there” – that is, without praying. The wording was coordinated with Jordan, with the mediation of then-U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.

Over the last two months, since the fighting with the Gaza Strip, Israel, Jordan, the United States and, to some extent, the Palestinian Authority have been working behind the scenes to sever the link Hamas has created between itself and Jerusalem. Bennett’s announcement is liable to embarrass all those parties to the efforts, just after the new prime minister managed to turn over a new leaf in relations with Jordan and was hosted by King Abdullah.

As usual when it comes to Jerusalem, things are happening at a sensitive time: On Monday, Abdullah is scheduled to pay his first visit to U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington. We can assume the issue will come up.

There’s also the issue of the United Arab List. Bennett, unlike Netanyahu, heads a governing coalition that includes an Islamic party. It's no coincidence that on Sunday, the United Arab List and the southern faction of the Islamic Movement, with which it is affiliated, released a statement condemning “the invasion by large numbers of settlers and the violation of Al-Aqsa’s sanctity.” The party and the movement also warned that they would support any Palestinian effort to prevent a change to the status quo.

Continue @ : https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-bennett-s-shift-on-jewish-prayer-on-the-temple-mount-may-be-a-game-changer-1.10011220

BTW .....he saw the error of his ways very quickly

See : Bennett Backtracks on Statement Backing Jewish Freedom of Worship on Temple Mount

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-bennett-backtracks-on-statement-backing-jewish-right-to-prayer-on-temple-mount-1.10012103